I'm Back!

So "I'm back!" is a loaded little exclamation. It has several meanings at this time. Firstly it means I'm back on my blog. Sorry about that. I sort of fell off of the bloggin' wagon. :) Secondly, I am back in General Cepeda. I cannot tell you how good it feels to be back in missions. Lastly, I was back in the States.

So much has happened in the last two months I don't really know where to begin! I guess I will begin with November 27th, the day I left General Cepeda. The days leading up to my last day in General were an emotional roller-coaster. It was a time of great excitement, but also a time of sadness. I was excited to return to the states to see my family and friends, but I was heartbroken to leave my Mexican family. My time in the states was incredible. I was able to celebrate Christmas and New Years Eve with my family. One of my favorite memories of being with family and friends while I was home, was playing Fruit Ninja and Just Dance in my sister's living-room. It was great to see Angela and Gus (my sister and her husband) competing as ninja's and dancing together. The kid's were hilarious to watch, especially my nephew Jake. He gets so into the game. The day I was leaving Florida to drive back to Louisiana, to then drive back to Mexico, I stopped at Angela's house to tell everyone goodbye, and as soon as I got there, the kids invited me to play Just Dance. After my last goodbyes, I walked to my car with a smile on face and completely out of breath from the game.

I drove to Louisiana on the 31st of January to get in a car the next day to drive to Mexico. I never thought I would be so at ease with traveling. Praise God He prepares us for what He calls us to! From the time I came back to the states on November 27th to the time I returned to Mexico on the 1st, I traveled back and forth from Florida to Louisiana around four times. My prayer on the way to Mexico was, "Lord, please make this mission new to me." He answered that prayer from the second I walked in to our mission house to the time I said my last goodbyes. It was the same house I lived in for 8 months last year, but it was like I was seeing it for the first time. I wish I could put into words how wonderful the week in Mexico was. What made it so wonderful was the group that was with us. Each and everyone of them are beautiful servants for our Lord.

What blessed me the most on this trip was one of the work projects. I know in past blogs I have mentioned members of the family we built a house for. I know I have mentioned Fransica and Chemo's daughter Brenda and the first time I saw her smile. This week I saw her smile, giggle, and speak a lot. She was so giddy and happy. I have never seen her open up to people the way she opened up to this short-term group. The reason the building of their house blessed me so much was because since I have left Mexico in November, I've had two dreams of Fransica and Chemo inviting me over to a new house for dinner. This new house had beds and a real floor in it. This new house had a good roof that protected them from the rain and cold. This new house was clean and not crowded. During the week, we (not me personally) built that new house. That dream of mine is coming true. Not only do they have a new house, but they also are getting beds and a floor in their house. I know without a doubt that one day I will share a meal with them in this new house. I feel like this is a new beginning for this family.

I began this blog entry when I first arrived in Mexico and I am finishing it a few days after I returned to the States. If it is a little confusing or hard to follow, I do apologize. So what is next for me in this new year?? I am going to the Philippines!!!! P

lease begin praying with me for that mission. God Bless and know that I am praying for you!!

My Mexican Family Vacation

About three weeks ago our friends Linda and Juan invited Erika and I to go to Guadalajara for five days because Juan had a retreat to go to. When they invited us I kind of brushed it off and didn’t really want to go. About a week or so ago Juan and Linda also invited Toño and Mari and all the kids to go as well. I really didn’t think they would go either, but to my surprise on this day, November 2, at five in the morning we loaded up Toño’s van and all got inside.

Our trip started in the dark with the kids singing songs in the back of the van none of which I understand. The parents turned the back of the van into a bed on top of the luggage. I love traveling in Mexico! We stopped to fill the van up and then took off. Toño said a prayer and then said we would pray a rosary later. Linda and Mari wanted to pray the rosary then, so we did. Toño began, “Padre nuestro que estas en el cielo….” An overwhelming peace filled the car as we all prayed together. Once we finished I was so at peace I fell asleep for a few hours. Once I woke up the van was filled with joyful children, great music, and smiles. This is Toño and Mari’s first family vacation ever. Toño told me this morning that once the clock hit 4:00 AM every kid, excluding the baby Mili, flew out of bed with excitement, ready for vacation.

Since I’ve woken up we made a stop for the bathroom, only when we stopped, we pulled on the side of the road and all of the kids hopped out and did their business. Why haven’t we done that all my life when I traveled with my family? It is so much easier and faster than looking for a bathroom. We loaded everyone back in to the van, passed around bread, and had breakfast. So far it has been such a pleasant trip.

At around ten in the morning we arrived in a city named Zacatecas. We parked and walked around for a little while. We visited an old Franciscan Convent that absolutely beautiful. We took plenty of pictures because like I said it is Toño and Mari’s first vacation ever. We walked around downtown and visited a few Cathedrals. They were breathtakingly beautiful, but unfortunately the pictures I took cannot do it justice. While we walked around downtown we looked up way in the distance to a hill that looked as though it had a little community up there. Juan said before we left he was going to take us up there to get the best view possible of this beautiful city. We drove on twisty roads for ten minutes and finally arrived to the most beautiful view I’ve ever seen. I also noticed as we were parking people gathered with a lot of harnesses. I thought it was bungee jumping so I asked how much it cost, because I’ve secretly always wanted to bungee jump. It cost only $150 pesos, the equivalent to $14 US dollars, oh and it wasn’t bungee jumping, it was zip lining over a canon. “Even better, and a little safer.” I thought.

Erika and I each paid $150 pesos and then the lady who worked there strapped on our harnesses and put helmets on us. We were ready. I went first. I’m not sure where my sudden courage came from. It was an amazing feeling floating in the air, and I didn’t have an ounce of fear in my body. After our zip lining experience we walked around the little town on top of the hill. It was really beautiful. There were many booths selling homemade jewelry and other things. After about thirty minutes of walking around, we finally loaded back up and drove down the twisty roads to get back on the highway.

We made a few more stops to eat and look at various things and arrived in Guadalajara at 11 PM. It was a LONG day in the car, but really blessed. Once we arrived at our home for the next few days, we ate dinner and all crashed. The next day we visited with Linda’s family and went to a small town two hours away. The small town was so beautiful. I regret not taking pictures. We went there to surprise Juan because that is where his retreat was. Linda, Toño, and Mari all went inside and Erika and I watched the kids outside.

I could go on with the details of each day, but I feel like this blog is already on the long side. Our little vacation all in all was such a blessing. We were able to see so many beautiful things and meet such wonderful people. The Lord provided many opportunities for us to pray with the sick and needy on this trip. We also made new friends. I left Guadaljara feeling refreshed and ready to return to my home in General Cepeda. God is so good always!

Cenaculos

Lord, conform my will to Yours always.

Every Thursday I go to holy hour at church and after that mass. I am used to a holy hour being a time of silent prayer, but at my parish, here, it is not at all a time of quiet, but rather of time of singing praise and praying aloud in front of the most holy Eucharist. Because I am so used of silent adoration I haven't quite become accustom to this new form of adoration. Last Thursday I decided I was going to go to holy hour and take part in the singing and praying aloud instead of trying to pray silently in my pew. To my surprise last Thursday was Cenaculos which is when several groups take the most holy Eucharist to different houses for a time of praise and worship.

Last year I went to Cenaculos only once and because I didn't understand Spanish at all, I was confused the whole time. This time as I walked to the church to meet up with a group and begin our walk to the house we were going to, in my heart I was dreading the hour ahead because of my confusion last time. To my surprise, I was completely moved during this time of worship. As we walked in the streets with the holy Eucharist, men and women stopped to make the sign of the cross and give adoration to our Lord. We sang songs and prayed as we walked. Once we got in to the house, there was a simple, yet beautiful altar to place our Lord on as we adored Him.

If I remember correctly, last year when I went to Cenaculos we prayed a rosary but this holy hour was a time of discussion. The lady leading read the great commission in the gospel of Matthew and asked us questions about it. The best part of all of this, was that reading the great commission was conformation to a prayer I had prayed. Earlier that day I was praying asking the Lord what I should give a teaching on in the rancho we will be visiting on Tuesday of next week and thought maybe I should teach about missions. God said yes when the lady leading read the great commission. I love when He uses a situation where I am very hesitant, to touch my heart and answer my prayers. "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations....." Matthew 28:19a Go,bring Jesus to others! They are waiting!

Almighty God

There is so much to write about, I don't even know where to begin. At times I am so overwhelmed with this mission because there is so much need that we cannot meet. I am so glad that we serve an almighty God who can multiply food, heal the sick, and comfort the broken. Other times, I am just so blessed by the hospitality and generosity of the people here.

Last Thursday Erika and I decided to clean our van during our door hours because we park the van right in front of the door so that we can still see if people come to our house. Our friends Maribel and Sergio stopped to talk to us while we were cleaning and, as some of you may know, Sergio has a brain tumor. While we talking and laughing he all of sudden turned really serious. Maribel said, "He is having a spell, can we go inside of the house??" We ran into the house, made Sergio sit down and immediately began to pray. In a short while he was better again and this time his spell didn't turn into a full blown seizure. Praise you Jesus! He was smiling and making googly eyes at his wife again. I asked him how many times he has these episodes and he said about once a day, sometimes more. Wow! Again, I am blown away by the strength of the people we have the privilege of serving.

Friday was our fun day. We take a fun day once every two weeks and Friday we decided to go Saltillo. We took Sergio, Maribel, and the kids with us. While in Saltillo, they were able to buy a thing to hook up electricity in their house and a few other things they needed. We spent time all together in the plaza in front of the Cathedral to talk and visit in the shade. The last stop of the day was at Maribel's mom's house. She gave Sergio and Maribel a washing machine as a gift. I was so blessed to see them so blessed. They left Saltillo with electricity hook ups for their house, some groceries, and a new washing machine. It was a great day.
Saturday we had home visits, and actually we only visited Doña Elvira. In a previous blog I sort of told her story, but she is the sweet old lady that takes care of her five grand kids because her daughter sort of abandoned them. Doña Elvira was telling us about how her youngest grand-daughter is doing, as she began to cry. I cannot remember the little girls name, but she is only three and a half years old and has cancer. She has been in the hospital for two years now and Doña Elvira told us she was in need of a blood transfusion and if she didn't receive it she would probably die. At that moment in Doña Elvira's little house I was overwhelmed. It is so hard for me to see the needs some people have or the sufferings they have and feel like there is nothing I can do. Again, I know that I serve an almighty God who is capable of all things.On another note, we have had our youth group for two weeks now. This week will be our third week. Kids are coming, praise God! Each week we've had around 10 kids. The first week we played a few games and talked about their purpose in life. The second week we played a few games and talked about the importance of prayer. This week we are just having a fun day and are going to either watch a movie or play capture the flag. We want to do one fun day a month so the kids have a chance to invite their friends to come see what this group is all about.As of right now, I find myself so blessed with serving here in General. I am blessed each day by one or more of our ministries. I am blessed that the Lord has chosen me to be His little missionary.

Simply Blessed

So, yesterday was my birthday and I was blown away with the love I received. Last year in September my journey in missions began. When it came time for my birthday, I was sad because it was the first time I was celebrating my birthday without any of my immediate family with me. God knew I was a little sad and he made my birthday the best one I had ever had.

Last year I spent the day with my missionary brothers and sisters. After breakfast at Big Woods everyone honored me (it's a Summer's tradition) and of course I cried, and then people gave me gifts. I think all of the kids made me cards. It was absolutely perfect. Later in the day we went to the park to have a picnic and cupcakes to celebrate the feast day of St. Theresé. (She is the patron saint of missions and her feast day is my birthday...coincidence? I think not!)

The weather that day was perfect as well. I was able to run and play with all the kids and swing, which is only my favorite thing in the whole world to do. It truly was a perfect day. I didn't think anything could top it, but God really does love me so much.

This year for my birthday, I celebrated with my Mexican family. It was the first time without any of my family, but yet again I was blown away. Throughout the whole day, four cakes were made for me. I mean I'm pretty sure I had the biggest sugar rush I've ever had in my life. In the early afternoon we had invited the kids from our youth group as well as some of our friends children to have a water balloon fight. I wish I had videoed it to show you, but it was fun and entertaining. After the water fight we all ate cake together. That was the first cake of the day that Erika made.
When the water fight was over our friends Linda and Juan returned to visit and pick up their kids. When they returned they too had a cake. Of course I had to mordida the cake, which means to take a bite while someone shoves your face in it! It was strawberry with chocolate frosting...delicious. Juan asked if he could make us lunch and of course we said yes. We just hung out and visited with them while the food cooked and then sat down together, gave thanks, and dove into the yummy food.After the festivities ended with Juan and Linda, Erika and I went to Toño and Mari's house to learn how to cook one of our favorite meals and to eat dinner with them. Mari, to my surprise, had baked me cake as well. I don't why I was surprised because it was such a Mari thing to do. She even decorated it with hearts. Truly she is a saint. Again with the mordida, and we shared delicious dessert. Most of the time I feel more at home at Toño and Mari's house than I do at my own house here in Mexico. I think it is because their house always has kids running around and it just feel cozy inside.

The last stop of the day was with my friends Armando and Yolanda. They also had a cake for me. We chatted for awhile, watched a little tv and then ate cake. I mordidad again, and Yolanda and Armando being the quirky friends that they are, really shoved my face into the cake. It was okay though because it was a delicious cake! Like I said before, I was completely blown away by the love that I received on my birthday and cannot wait for next year!

Hold On

This morning I woke up with a hunger and thirst for Jesus like I haven't had in a while. I feel as though my heart is ready for growth and change. I've been listening to praise and worship this morning and one song has really struck me and challenged me. Please read the lyrics and if you have a chance listen to it online. I hope it challenges you the same way it has challenged me. God Bless!

Hold On by Shawn McDonald

Another day gone by
And again I ask myself why
I question my sanity
Why I believe what I believe
Some might think that I'm crazy
For believing in something I cannot see

So won't you now
Hold on to me
Please don't let me go
Hold on
'Cause I am prone to wonder
Prone to leave this faith I know

Hold on
And now they say that the wise man
Well, he fears the Lord
And this fear is the beginning of all wisdom
And I must be a fool
'Cause I sure don't seem to fear you
'Cause the very things that you will me to do
Well, I just don't seem to get around to
The very things that you hate
Are the very things that I always stumble into

So won't you now
Hold on to me
Please don't let me go
Hold on
'Cause I am prone to wonder
Prone to leave this faith I know

It's a Cross-

Cross figuratively speaking: a thing that is unavoidable and has to be endured.

Last night was a rough one and my cross reared its ugly head. I’ve said now, for quite some time, that my anxiety is my little hell here on earth. It is the biggest cross that I’ve had to carry. I don’t battle with it as often as I did in the past nor does it paralyze me now as it did, but when it comes, it comes with a vengeance. Last night when it came, the littlest things like breathing became a battle. I prayed, but in frustration soon gave up, knowing that the night ahead was going to be a long and hard one. I finally

passed out and woke up this morning groggy wanting to sleep the day away.

After breakfast Erika and I prayed Christian Prayer and I felt like the Lord was speaking directly to me. “As they go through the Bitter Valley they make it a place of springs, the autumn rain covers it with blessings.” Psalm 84:7 After Morning Prayer I spent some time thinking about the above verse. I felt like the Lord was saying to me, although you feel like you are suffering right now, I will rain down blessings amongst your suffering. I felt Him say to me that it is my chance to be united with Christ in a very small way.

Everything I read after Morning Prayer spoke to me. I read from The Imitation of Christ by Thomas A Kempis, “Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace.” The whole idea of peace, having peace, and enjoying much peace started the wheels in my brain turning. I started thinking of peace in my life and what I expect it to be like. I have this vision of peace being my whole body, well mostly my physical body, being completely calm. The actual definition of peace is freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility. Last night and with every anxiety attack I’ve had, I often prayed for peace, and felt that the Lord didn’t answer my prayer because my physical body wasn’t experiencing the peace I desired. After last night, I realized that I am able to always have peace, and that is peace in my soul that cannot be disturbed or taken away by anxiety. I can rest in knowing that my soul is at peace because the Lord is right along side with me riding out the storm. After all, it is such a small storm in hindsight.

Of course I woke up this morning wanting to have a pity party. I wanted to keep an attitude of, “Poor me, my life is tough. I have this huge cross that I like to call my little hell on earth because it is such a big burden to bear,” but I was awakened to reality. A dear friend of mine, Lucy, came to the door. As she sat down, she told me she didn’t sleep much last night either. She began talking about why she came and what it boiled down to was she didn’t have food for herself and her family. As she continued to talk, she began to cry and through her tears praised God because even though she didn’t have food for herself and her family, she has legs and can walk. She looked for the blessings in her life and didn’t wallow in the ways she and her family are suffering. I was able to give her a little food, but I think she helped me more than I helped her. She helped me to get my perspective back. Even though I suffer sometimes, I am united in Christ as well as with all those who suffer in some way. I realized that what I thought was a big burden is actually microscopic.

The last thing I would like to leave you with is something else I read this morning. “If we strove to stand firm in the struggles like men of valor we should not fail to experience the help of our Lord from heaven. For He is ever ready to help all who fight, trusting in His grace; He also affords us occasions to fight that we may conquer.” Imitation of Christ. Stand firm in your struggles and cry out to the Lord in faith, knowing that He is an all-loving Father who hears your pleas and will rescue you. Fight so that you may conquer!